Carbon Tax: Australians Losing Interest?

Australians may be losing interest in their carbon tax -- or at least
 griping about it. The Australian reports:

THE number of complaints from consumers about the federal government's carbon tax dropped dramatically in the last three months, according to consumer watchdog figures.

The Australian reports that data obtained from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) shows it received just three complaints a day about the tax between October and January.

That compares with 10 to 15 complaints at the beginning of October, and 60 complaints a day in the Gillard government's first 100 days in office, the newspaper reports.

The figures reportedly show that complaints related to the tax now make up just one per cent of total complaints received by the ACCC.

Maybe that it's just that their world hasn't come to an end with enactment of the tax, despite predictions.

There is some talk of a tax here in the Pacific Northwest, where state transportation people are worried that electric cars aren't paying their fair share of road upkeep from gas taxes. British Columbia has had a carbon tax for four years:

British Columbia collects about $1 billion each year from its carbon tax. The downside? Heating prices went up and gas is up 30 cents per gallon (or about 7 cents per liter). But the government takes the carbon tax revenue and then turns around and puts it towards lowering the income and corporate tax rates, as well as providing targeted rebates for low-income and rural citizens.

Slowly but surely, a Pigovian carbon tax is coming everyone's way.... and perhaps someday people will wonder why there was ever any other kind of tax.